HIV-infected mothers' foci of concern during the viral testing of their infants

Xpert HIV-1 point-of-care test for neonatal diagnosis of HIV in the birth testing programme of a maternity hospital: a field evaluation study

BACKGROUND

Point-of-care testing (POCT) among HIV-exposed infants might improve linkage to care relative to laboratory-based testing (LABT). We evaluated HIV-1 POCT at birth in the context of universal LABT in a maternity hospital and describe our implementation experience.

METHODS

We did a field evaluation study between Oct 1, 2014, and April 30, 2016, at the urban Rahima Moosa Mother and Child Hospital (RMMCH), Johannesburg, South Africa. We aimed to sample consecutive neonates at birth with POCT (Cepheid Xpert HIV-1 Qualitative test) and compared results with those of LABT (Roche COBAS TaqMan HIV-1 Qualitative test) with respect to performance in terms of sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value (PPV), negative predictive value (NPV), and Cohen's κ coefficient, result return, antiretroviral treatment (ART) initiation, and coverage.

FINDINGS

18 268 women delivered livebirths at RMMCH and 4267 (23%) were HIV-positive with 4336 HIV-exposed neonates delivered. Mothers of 4141 (96%) HIV-exposed neonates were offered infant birth testing. Mothers of 4112 (99%) neonates consented. In 78 neonates with consent (2%), a test was not done due to early neonatal death (n=13), mother departing before venesection, or staff unavailability. Among 3970 infants who had LABT, 57 (1%) tested positive, 3906 (99%) tested negative, two (<1%) were indeterminate, and five (<1%) had an error result. 2238 (56%) of these infants had concurrent POCT. POCT detected all 30 HIV-infected neonates (sensitivity 100%; 95% CI 88·4-100) with two additional false-positive results (specificity 99·9%; 99·7-100). All positive and 96·2% of negative POCT results were returned compared with 88·9% of positive and 52·8% of negative LABT results. Although every POCT required 90 min of instrument time, 2·6 h (IQR 2·3-3·1) elapsed between phlebotomy and result return. In days, median time of result return for POCT was 1 day, significantly earlier than 10 days for LABT (p<0·0001). ART was initiated in 30 neonates (100%) with positive POCT compared with 24 (88·9%, p=0·10) of 27 infants who had LABT only, with initiation occurring a median of 5 days earlier in the POCT group (p<0·0001). POCT implementation required additional staff and weekend cover.

INTERPRETATION

Compared with LABT, POCT was associated with good performance, improved rates of result return, and reduced time to ART initiation. Resources needed to integrate POCT into a routine birth testing programme require further evaluation.

FUNDING

National Institutes of Health.

Psychosocial challenges facing women living with HIV during the perinatal period in rural Uganda

The complexities of navigating pregnancy while living with HIV predispose women to additional stress. Finding ways to minimize psychosocial challenges during the perinatal period may maximize the well-being of mothers living with HIV and their children. The goal of this study was to explore psychosocial challenges experienced by women living with HIV (WLWH) during pregnancy and the postpartum. We conducted individual in-depth interviews with 20 WLWH recruited from an HIV treatment cohort study in Mbarara, Uganda as part of a larger study exploring perinatal depression. We conducted content analyses to identify themes related to challenges of WLWH during pregnancy and the postpartum. Participants had a median age of 33 years [IQR: 28-35], a median of 3 living children [IQR: 2-5], and 95% had achieved HIV-RNA suppression. Challenges were organized around the following themes: HIV -related stigma from health professionals, HIV status disclosure dilemma, unintended pregnancy and intimate partner violence, HIV and environmental structural barriers and distress and fear related to maternal and child health. Stigma centered on discrimination by health care professionals and personal shame associated with being pregnant as a WLWH. This led to difficulty engaging in HIV care, particularly when coupled with structural barriers, such as lack of transportation to clinic. Participants experienced intimate partner violence and lacked support from their partners and family members. Distress and fear about the health and uncertainty about the future of the unborn baby due to maternal deteriorating physical health was common. The perinatal period is a time of stress for WLWH. Challenges experienced by WLWH may compromise successful engagement in HIV care and may reduce quality of life for women and their children. Strategies aimed at alleviating the challenges of WLWH should involve the larger structural environment including partners, family and community member as well as policy makers, funders and program implementers to work together for the common cause. These consolidated efforts may not only lower the risk of psychological distress but has potential to create long lasting solutions to benefit the wider community.

HIV-infected mothers' experiences during their infants' HIV testing

Both survival with HIV and rates of perinatal HIV infection have significantly declined during the past decade, due to antiretroviral therapies that interrupt HIV transmission to the fetus and newborn. Although HIV is no longer routinely fatal to mothers or transmitted to fetuses, and the testing of newborns for HIV has been improved, evidence about HIV-infected mothers' experiences during the months of their infants' HIV testing predates these improvements. This qualitative study on 16 mothers was an analysis of interviews conducted several weeks after testing was completed and all infants had been determined to be uninfected. Mothers reported that their experiences evolved during the months of testing. Initial reactions included maternal trauma and guilt associated with infant testing. They then reported learning to cope with the roller coaster ride of repeated testing with the help of information from clinicians. By the end of the testing period, ambiguity began to resolve as they engaged in tentative maternal-infant attachment and expressed desire for a sense of normalcy. Need for support and fear of stigma persisted throughout. These findings expand current knowledge about this experience and suggest clinical strategies to guide HIV-infected women during this stressful period.

Creating an eLearning resource to improve knowledge and understanding of pregnancy in the context of HIV infection

Patient narratives have much to teach healthcare professionals about the experience of living with a chronic condition. While the biomedical narrative of HIV treatment is hugely encouraging, the narrative of living with HIV continues to be overshadowed by a persuasive perception of stigma. This paper presents how we sought to translate the evidence from a qualitative study of the perspectives of HIV affected pregnant women and expectant fathers on the care they received, from the pre conception to post natal period, into educational material for maternity care practice. Narrative scripts were written based on the original research interviews, with care taken to reflect the key themes from the research. We explore the way in which the qualitative findings bring to life patient and partner experiences and what it means for nurses, midwives and doctors to be prepared to care for couples affected by HIV. In so doing, we challenge the inequity between the dominance of biomedical knowledge over understanding the patient experience in the preparation of health professionals to care for HIV affected women and men who are having a baby or seeking to have a baby.

'Every pregnant woman needs a midwife'--the experiences of HIV affected women in maternity care

TITLE

'Every pregnant woman needs a midwife'-the experiences of HIV affected women in Northern Ireland.

OBJECTIVE

to explore HIV positive women's experiences of pregnancy and maternity care, with a focus on their interactions with midwives.

DESIGN

a prospective qualitative study.

SETTING

regional HIV unit in Northern Ireland.

PARTICIPANTS

22 interviews were conducted with 10 women at different stages of their reproductive trajectories.

FINDINGS

the pervasive presence of HIV related stigma threatened the women's experience of pregnancy and care. The key staff attributes that facilitated a positive experience were knowledge and experience, empathy and understanding of their unique needs and continuity of care.

KEY CONCLUSIONS

pregnancy in the context of HIV, whilst offering a much needed sense of normality, also increases woman's sense of anxiety and vulnerability and therefore the need for supportive interventions that affirm normality is intensified. A maternity team approach, with a focus on providing 'balanced care' could meet all of the woman and child's medical needs, whilst also emphasising the normalcy of pregnancy.